The Pink Flamingo spent much of late night Thursday and all of early Friday morning attempting to pray for the situation in Japan. As Christians that is our duty. Unless we have some specific skill to offer, prayer is the very best thing we an offer.

“...Japan is situated along the world’s most active earthquake belt, the Pacific Ring of Fire, where rigid plates in the Earth’s crust collide along the rim of the Pacific Ocean. This earthquake originated 231 miles (373 kilometers) northeast of Tokyo and 80 miles (130 km) east of Sendai, Honshu in the Pacific Ocean. The earthquake occurred at a depth of about 15.2 miles (24.4 kilometers).

In this area, the Pacific Plate, the plate beneath the Pacific Ocean, is moving almost due west and being pushed down into the Earth’s interior along a trench off Japan’s east coast. On average, the Pacific Plate is moving at 3.5 inches (8.9 centimeters) per year, but this process is not continuous, according to Keith Sverdrup, a professor of geophysics at the University of Wisconsin-Madison…”

USGS

The shame and the abjectly disgusting aspect of all of this is the way the bottom feeders are playing the blame game. Let’s start with climate change. There are foolish individuals who are actually claiming that the quake was caused by climate change.

POPSCI

“…Some of the so-called evidence for this moon-earthquake relationship is specious at best. From a National Geographic article on the “lunar connection” back in 2005: “At least two major quakes may support [James A.] Berkland’s theory. The December 26, 2004, magnitude 9.1 in Sumatra, Indonesia, occurred on the day of a full moon. Likewise, the March 27, 1964, magnitude 9.2 earthquake in Alaska occurred on the day of maximum high tide. According to Berkland, such correlations are more than coincidences. They demonstrate a true connection between the moon and earthquake activity.” First off, two earthquakes coinciding with full moons is hardly scientific, statistically-sound evidence. How many “large” earthquakes (and who defines that anyway?) occur when it isn’t a full moon? And how many full moons have we had when there wasn’t a “large” earthquake? I’ve said this before, but it is an easy trap – correlation does not mean causation. Full moons happen 12 (maybe 13) times a year, so if you randomly sprinkle earthquakes through time, many large ones are bound to coincide with the full moon. USGS seismologist Dr. John Bellini followed up on Berkland’s theories: “Bellini questioned the scientific validity of Berkland’s predictions. He said they appear to be “self-selected statistical analysis of historical seismicity rates and are so vague in time and location that they are certain to be correct.”…”

Perhaps the best answer to the abject idiot who wrote this dribble for Grist is one word: Thera

“…It’s often difficult to visualize what climate change-related disasters might look like, but the images pouring out of Japan are yet another reminder of the specter of storm surges supercharged by more powerful weather and rising seas, and even climate-change caused tsunamis. (All of America’s coastal cities are vulnerable to these impacts — including, in this remarkable animation, New York City.) Right on the heels of Brisbane, Snowpocalypse, and Australia’s record dust storms, we have yet another reminder of what an Earth transformed by climate change could look like….”

It is amazing to find that real people with real brains can even consider this, considering the historical record. Oh, wait, people no longer study history. I gather the eruption of Tjera around 1600 BC (NOT BCE).

“…Other theories have been proposed based on archeological evidence found on Crete indicating that a tsunami, likely associated with the eruption, impacted the coastal areas of Crete and may have severely devastated the Minoan coastal settlements. A more recent theory is that much of the damage done to Minoan sites resulted from a large earthquake that preceded the Thera Eruption….”

Then there was the eruption of Krakatoa in 1883. There was also 1816, the Year Without a Summer. Instead, we should check out the Ring of Fire, which has nothing to do with Johnny Cash. The Ring of Fire is a result of plate tectonics and NOT climate change.

“…The Pacific Ring of Fire (or sometimes just the Ring of Fire) is an area where large numbers of earthquakes and volcanic eruptions occur in the basin of the Pacific Ocean. In a 40,000 km (25,000 mi) horseshoe shape, it is associated with a nearly continuous series of oceanic trenches, volcanic arcs, and volcanic belts and/or plate movements. The Ring of Fire has 452 volcanoes and is home to over 75% of the world’s active and dormant volcanoes. It is sometimes called the circum-Pacific belt or the circum-Pacific seismic belt.

About 90% of the world’s earthquakes and 80% of the world’s largest earthquakes occur along the Ring of Fire. The next most seismic region (5–6% of earthquakes and 17% of the world’s largest earthquakes) is the Alpide belt, which extends from Java to Sumatra through the Himalayas, the Mediterranean, and out into the Atlantic. The Mid-Atlantic Ridge is the third most prominent earthquake belt…”

USGS

What The Pink Flamingo does not get is why anyone is listening to a climatologist explain something that needs to be explained by a geologist.

“…According to experts from the China Meteorological Administration, the 2004 tsunami that struck Southeast Asia was partially linked to the rising sea level caused by global climate change…”

The Daily Caller

We live on a planet that is very much alive geologically. Fortunately it is not as active as it has been in the past, but once in awhile nature rears its ugly head. This is one of those times. Stuff happens. It is not because of climate change, astrology, new age idiocy, liberals, conservatives,

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"When fascism comes to America, it will be wrapped in the flag and carrying a cross.”--Sinclair Lewis

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

SJ Reidhead (aka The Pink Flamingo) is a writer based in New Mexico. The author of two published novels, both westerns: Dust Devil and The Second Mrs. Earp and two published works of non-fictions: TRAVESTY: Frank Waters Earp Agenda Exposed and A Church for Helldorado, Endicott Peabody's 1882 Tombstone Diary. One of the leading authorities on the life of Wyatt Earp and Tombstone during the Earp years, she is currently writing a series of murder mysteries set in modern day Tombstone. The author is also working on a book about fashion in the Wild West. When complete, there will be over 2100 unpublished antique photographs dating from 1855-1910.

The author's work has appeared in Wild West, True West, Blogcritics, and The Tombstone Times. Recently the author has had to deal with a father in Stage 4 Alzheimer's Disease. This is leading to a book dealing with the frustrations of dealing with the frustrations of the disease, finance, legal, health-care, and things no one bothers telling families about it.

SJ Reidhead has been involved in Republican politics since she was 'a little kid'. During the Reagan years she was a lobbyist working with various non-profit organizations who were attempting to salvage NASA and the American space program after the disastrous Carter years. Unfortunately, because of the libertarian take-over of the GOP, and the rise of the Tea Parties, as the Republican Party becomes more and more extreme and marginalized, it is impossible to remain loyal to the GOP. The Pink Flamingoremains GOP in order to try to bring the party back to what it once was. I fear it is an impossible task.

The Pink Flamingo went on line on October 4, 2005, after the author realized "normal" Republicans were being marginalized as the extreme far right attempts to become the new normal. In November, 2012, The Pink Flamingo, for the first time ever, voted for a Democrat, Barack Obama. Normal will never again apply to the GOP.

THE PINK FLAMINGO STORY

It started out as a joke. During the seven years I worked with the girls of my parish, leading a youth group, one of the things that I stressed were manners. Part of having manners, the way I see it, is to know how to set a proper table, host a party, cater it, and clean up afterward. I was fortunate enough to have a group of very talented girls in my youth group. They learned how to plan for, and execute large church functions, very properly. During one such function I noticed there were several incredibly tacky pink flamingos sitting on the table. Knowing the girls were up to something, I said nothing. A few months later they did the same thing at a function I was hosting at my home. I said nothing. They had a birthday party for me. More pink flamingos appeared - and a joke was born.

Thanks to the girls, all of whom are now grown, I have a collection of pink flamingos. It has become an ongoing joke. When I began working on my political blog, I realized the only possibly title was The Pink Flamingo!